Profession

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This section of the wiki is focused on suggestions for obtaining a desired professional position and keeping it! Although you are being trained for IDT positions focused on educational technology, do not limit yourself to academia. Most high-paying instructional design positions are in business in industry. Below, I have categorized the suggestions as the three P's.

Preparation

1. Familiarize yourself with how businesses operate.
2. Acquire a strong set of skills in the production of instructional media.
3. Acquire a strong set of design and analysis skills.
4. Acquire some management skills.
5. Find out as much as you can about your potential employers when preparing for an interview.
6. Rehearse for your interview questions:
   • Why you selected the field of performance technology or instructional design
   • A quick digest of your course products -- things people can see that you produced
   • Special skills and knowledge that you have acquired
   • Some statement about your off-duty pursuits (e.g., athletic, art, music, language)
   • Why you think you wold like to work for the organization

Professional Organizations

To maintain a professional status in the field of instruction design and technology, it is a good idea to become active in professional organizations. Two ways to do this are to delver papers at the organization's annual conference, and to help various groups within their organization to perform their work. Some professional organizations in the field of instructional design and technology and their websites are listed below:

American Society for Training and Development	www.astd.org
Association for Educational Communications and Technology	www.aect.org
Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education	www.aace.org
International Society for Performance Improvement	www.ispi.org
International Society for Technology in Education	www.iste.org
Society for Applied Learning Technology	www.salt.org

Publication

It is also wise to make a habit to submit your papers and reports to a journal for publication. Below are some periodicals that are publication possibilities for IDT professionals:

British Journal of Educational Technology	Performance Improvement Journal
Educational Technology	Performance Improvement Quarterly
Tech Trends	Training
Training & Development	Instructional Science
International Journal of Instructional Media	Educational Technology Research and Development

AECT/NCATE Competencies for the 21st Century

Design

• ISD
• Message design
• Instructional strategies
• Learner characteristics

Development

• Print technologies
• Audiovisual technologies
• Computer-based technologies
• Integrated technologies

Utilization

• Media utilization
• Diffusion of innovations
• Implementation and institutionalization
• Policies and regulations

Management

• Project management
• Resource management
• Delivery system management
• Information management

Evaluation

• Problem analysis
• Criterion_referenced measurement
• Formative and summative evaluation
• Long-range planning